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Redtail's Debt/Chapter 6
Chapter description :Redtail is awoken by Willowpelt in the warrior's den. As he leaves the outer rim of nests, he overhears Frostfur and Brindleface talking about the upcoming attack on WindClan. His heart sinks, thinking about his talk with Stagleap about trying to talk their leaders into peace. He joins the other young warriors as they gathering in the clearing, he thinks that he might still have time to tell Sunstar the truth. But he thinks about the consequences of the lie, and that his loyalty was owed to ThunderClan, not WindClan. :He spots Tigerclaw sharing prey with Thistleclaw. The tabby spots Redtail and walks over, telling him to eat something to keep his strength up. He tells Redtail that Sunstar wants the patrol to make a mess of WindClan camp, and if he saw Sorrelpaw or Stagleap to not hesitate to claw them. Redtail points out that the apprentice didn't purposefully cross the border and that the pair of them should talk to Sunstar and tell the truth about what really happened the previous day. Tigerclaw tells the tom that they did tell Sunstar what really happened, making Redtail retort back that they didn't. The older warrior dismisses him, telling him that he was still young and misunderstood the situation, however, Redtail insists that he knows what the truth is. He feels uncertain as he continues to argue, thinking that maybe Tigerclaw was right as he was one of ThunderClan's best warriors. Tigerclaw tells the tom to remember who the true enemy is and that anything that makes them weaker makes ThunderClan stronger. Redtail inevitably agrees with what the older cat is saying as Tigerclaw finishes off by giving him battle advice. :Bluefur leads the patrol out of ThunderClan camp to Fourtrees. She tells her cats that the point of the mission is to show that ThunderClan isn't afraid to defend what is theirs. The six cats cross through the Fourtrees boundry with Bluefur taking the lead, with Tigerclaw and Thistleclaw close behind her. Redtail hangs back with Thrushpelt and Patchpelt, asking if they'd ever been to WindClan's camp. Patchpelt tells him that he had once with Featherwhisker when the medicine cat had to talk to Barkface. The patched warrior explains to the younger cat the layout of the camp and how it differs vastly to ThunderClan's own. Redtail wonders how much damage their patrol could do if WindClan didn't even have proper nests. :The patrol makes their way onto WindClan territory quickly to avoid detection, reaching the slope which Redtail struggles with. With support from Patchpelt though, he makes it to the top and stares over the vastness of WindClan's territory. Beside him, Patchpelt points out the camp and they begin to follow Bluefur as they get into position. :Charging through the gorse, the ThunderClan patrol burst into WindClan camp. Doespring questions the arrival of the cats and challenges them. An elder raises the alarm and the cats jump into battle. Ryestalk protects the entry to the nursery, but, as Thrushpelt tries to reassure her, Tigerclaw slashes her shoulder sending her running to shuffle the kits out of harm's way. Redtail and the other patrol members start to destroy WindClan's camp. Patchpelt hesitantly approaches the guarded medicine cat den, but, is called back by Bluefur. Tigerclaw calls the deputy soft, but, Bluefur reminds him of her rank and says the den is off-limits. :A surge of WindClan cats arrive back at their camp, led by Stagleap. The brown tom attacks Tigerclaw and the two fight viciously, as Redtail is dragged into a fight with Plumclaw. He watches Bluefur and Talltail fight and sees the WindClan deputy slashes at Bluefur's throat. The she-cat stumbles and drops to the ground. Redtail escapes from Plumclaw and rushes over to the deputy and panics when she doesn't reply to him. In a panic, he calls for ThunderClan to retreat and while Tigerclaw questions him, the rest of the patrol retreats and helps him carry Bluefur out of camp. WindClan taunts them as they retreat back to ThunderClan territory. :The patrol regroups and recovers at Fourtrees and Tigerclaw calls them cowards. Redtail confronts him and says that they had to retreat, pointing to Bluefur. Tigerclaw retorts that they should've finished the fight for her and not run away, unlike a true warrior. He comes down on Redtail saying that he has brought shame upon ThunderClan. The younger tom's breath catches in his throat as he thinks about the tabby's words, but, tells him that true warriors protect their Clanmates. He also adds that that was not a battle worth fighting. The patrol soon returns to camp. As they return, Tigerclaw hisses at Redtail and tells him well done for making it look like he cares about Bluefur, adding that he was a coward and had always been one since he was an apprentice. He also brings up the debt that he owes him. :Redtail holds the tabby's gaze and feels as though he was seeing the true nature of Tigerclaw for the first time. He tells Tigerclaw that he is worried about Bluefur and that his stupid grudge almost got her killed and that he doesn't owe him anything anymore. Redtail pushes past the tabby and reflects on the fact that he was a loyal cat, not to Tigerclaw, but, to ThunderClan instead. Characters Major }} Minor *Frostfur *Brindleface *Stagleap *Tigerclaw *Thistleclaw *Bluefur *Thrushpelt *Patchpelt *Barkface *Doespring *Aspenfall *Ryestalk *Mudkit *Plumclaw *Talltail }} Mentioned *Sorrelpaw *Featherwhisker *Two unnamed elders }} Notes and references Category:Redtail's Debt Category:Novellas Category:Chapter subpages